“So, Dr. Rubin—”
“Keith.” He smiles, taking a pull from his beer.
“Okay, Keith. What made you move to Cordova?”
“I’m not sure. There was an opening in Alaska for a doctor, and I figured, what the hell? I may as well see if I like it before I have kids and a wife to worry about. What about you? Are you planning on sticking around?”
“I actually don’t know what I’m going to do,” I say, then every hair on my body stands on end. I look towards the door as Austin walks in with Ben and Rhonda. I sit up taller as Rhonda waves, and Austin follows her gaze to me. The moment our eyes connect, I feel a surge rush through me. Then his eyes move to Keith and I see something flare in their blue depths I can’t make out, or I choose not to.
“Do you want to invite them over to sit with us?” Keith asks, and my eyes go to him.
“I’m sure they’re going to get their own table,” I tell him, once again trying to smile, but failing miserably.
“We have room,” he says, scooting toward me.
“Hey, Lea. Hi, Dr. Rubin,” Rhonda says, pulling off her coat and setting it on the back of one of the empty chairs at our table. “Do you mind if we sit with you? There aren’t really any tables left.”
I look from her to Ben then to Austin, and my pulse spikes as his fists clench at his sides. This is such a bad idea. “Sure.” I smile, and she moves to sit one chair over, and Ben sits next to her, forcing Austin to take the seat on my other side. “Keith, this is Austin and Ben. Rhonda, you already know.” Everyone greets each other—Ben with a, “Hi,” Rhonda with a smile, and Austin with a chin lift and a grunt.
“I’ve been craving a giant hamburger all day, so I called the boys to see if they wanted to go get something to eat,” Rhonda says.
“We just put in our orders,” Keith tells them, and Austin grunts again then leans back, placing his arm on the back of my chair. I start to lean forward, but his fingers in my hair prevent me from getting anywhere.
“How do you two know each other?” Ben asks, and I clear my throat, feeling suddenly uncomfortable.
“Keith is Mom’s doctor,” I say, earning another grunt from Austin. “She was supposed to come with us, but got a headache.”
“Is she okay?” Rhonda asks, not sounding concerned at all, which surprises me.
“She’s fine,” I mutter, suddenly finding the label on my beer bottle very interesting.
“You know what you want, Wolf?” Ben asks, pulling his arm from around Rhonda and standing.
“The usual,” Austin says, then Ben’s head dips to look at Rhonda.
“What do you want to drink, babe?”
“A virgin daiquiri.” She smiles, and he shakes his head and dips lower, brushing his mouth against hers before walking off to the bar.
“I’m going to use the restroom,” I say, praying that Austin releases my hair so I can get up without looking like I’ve gotten whiplash. Lucky for me, he does. The second I stand, I realize my dilemma. Austin is on one side, and Keith is on the other, both of them caging me in. “Excuse me,” I tell Austin, scooting in front of him, and then cry out as my feet get tangled and I end up in his lap. His arms wrap around me and the whiskers from his beard tickle my neck, where I feel him inhale a sharp breath against my skin, causing my core to contract.
“Sorry,” I stammer. His hands give me a squeeze as he lifts me up, putting me on my feet. “Thanks.” I mutter not even looking at him before I rush to the bathroom, shut and lock the door, then go to the sink and run my hands under the cool water.
“Lea,” Rhonda says from the other side of the door, so I take a breath, open it, and move out of the way, when she joins me inside. “Are you okay?”
“Yep.” I bite my lip and she narrows her eyes.
“You wanna talk about it?”
“Austin’s here,” I blurt, covering my face, then lower them when I hear her begin to laugh. “What’s funny?”
“Austin said the same thing, only it was more of a growl, when he saw you were here with Keith.”
“I’m not here with Keith.” She raises a brow. “Not like that. Mom’s playing sick,” I whine.
“Austin doesn’t know that.”
“He does; I just told him,” I explain.
“Okay, he didn’t know that. He just saw you with another man and flipped.”
“He didn’t,” I whisper.
“Lea, you need to open your eyes.”
“He told me he hated me. I mean, I know since then he said he didn’t mean it and has been nice, but you didn’t see the look in his eyes when he told me.”
“Since then, you guys have had a few talks, and even a meal together.”
“He hasn’t talked to me in weeks,” I try again, not wanting to even hope she could be right.
“I think he’s trying to get his head figured out.”
“He has a girlfriend,” I remind her, feeling that realization crush against me like a boulder.
“Who, Anna?” She laughs, waving me off.
“They’re moving in together,” I scoff.
She grumbles something under her breath then grabs my hand. “A few days before the baby shower, he told Anna he didn’t want to see her anymore.”
“What?” I hiss, pulling my hand from her grasp.